Chapter 4
CHAPTER FOUR
Ellery
“If we’re to succeed, we must take risks,” Indon replied. “If not, we’ll fail before we start.”
He was right, but fear still thrummed through my veins. If we had any chance of saving Ryker and the children, we had to win.
My heart clenched as my gaze drifted to the castle. By taking the aristocrats out first, we ran the risk of alerting the duke that we were coming, but we had to cut off the tail of the snake before we could move toward the duke. Without the support of the aristocrats, he’d be a lot weaker.
But he still holds the most important cards by having Ryker and most of the children of Tempest in his possession.
If we failed at this, they would be the ones to suffer. The chill working its way through me had nothing to do with the crisp air and everything to do with my growing terror.
When we first set off on this mission, I was convinced we’d succeed, but doubt wiggled its way in. We can do this.
We will do this!
I had to believe that, or we’d stand here until it was too late to do anything.
“We’ll return soon,” Indon said.
“I don’t see any, but there could be guards on the ground too,” I said.
“Then we will take care of them too.”
I chewed my bottom lip before managing a small nod. The leader of the gargoyles launched himself from the ground and swept out of the woods. The other two followed him. Given their massive size and weight, they moved with amazing grace.
They soared low across the ground, staying in the shadows. When I blinked, they vanished into the night. No matter how much I strained, I couldn’t detect the gargoyles.
The guards on the parapets must not have seen them either, as they didn’t raise an alarm. No shouts came from nearer the castle, which meant there weren’t any fighters on the ground… or the gargoyles had already destroyed them.
“Are you sure we can trust them, Lery?” Scarlet asked.
“Yes.”
“What happens when this is over? Are they going to turn on us?” Scarlet asked.
“No. They don’t need us for any of this.” I waved a hand at the castle. “They could do this all on their own. If they wanted us dead, we would be. You see their size; what good are we against them?”
“You have your lightning,” Luna said.
“Against all of the gargoyles?” I asked.
Scarlet opened her mouth to speak again before stopping herself.
I suspected she was going to mention the Heart of Stone, the gem stolen from the gargoyles by past amsirah.
Without the Heart, the gargoyles were statues, trapped beneath the temple, but I gave them their lives back when I returned the stone.
Few knew what I’d done to bring the gargoyles back to life, and it would remain a secret. They’d earned the right to that privacy; plus, I wasn’t sure I could take it back, even if I tried.